Ronaldo passes 300 goal barrier to inspire another Madrid win

Barcelona: Cristiano Ronaldo broke the 300 La Liga goals barrier as Real Madrid beat Getafe 3-1 on Saturday.
Ronaldo scored his team’s second goal from a Karim Benzema assist just before half-time.
And he added a third 12 minutes from time with a header from a Marcelo cross.
His 301 goals have come in 286 games. Lionel Messi is the only other player to have scored 300 or more, scoring 317 in 299 matches.
Real Madrid’s first goal came from Gareth Bale who scored with a left-foot shot inside the area after a Madrid corner had been knocked down by Isco.
Getafe made things hard for themselves when they had Loic Remy sent off three minutes into the second half for a flailing arm into the face of Nacho. But despite playing with a man less they still managed to score. Francisco Portillo converted a penalty after Nacho was adjudged to have fouled Jorge Molina.
There could have been more goals for Madrid. Ronaldo had one effort ruled out for a push and Bale hit the post with a shot from distance.
The win moves Madrid on to 54 points, seven behind second-placed Atletico Madrid and 12 behind Barcelona. Those two meet on Sunday at the Camp Nou.
“Of course I will be watching the game, I like football. I will be hoping for a draw so we can close the gap on both teams,” Sergio Ramos said.
Asked about Tuesday’s Champions League last-16 second leg against Paris Saint Germain he added: “Everyone knows what the Champions League means to us. We have to play with the same attitude on Tuesday in Paris.”
Getafe scorer Portillo said: “We thought we could get something here but we started badly and could not recover.”
Earlier Sevilla consolidated their place in the race for a European spot in La Liga with a 2-0 win over Athletic Bilbao.
Luis Muriel opened the scoring on 26 minutes from Franco Vazquez’s assist and the Argentine playmaker scored himself on 31 minutes with a header making it 2-0.
Athletic Bilbao were disappointing once more. “We know Sevilla start strongly at home and with a couple of stupid mistakes we fell behind,” defender Inigo Martinez said.
Sevilla’s Vazquez said: “We have had a long week with three games so now we can rest before our next match.”
Sevilla remain fifth but they are now four points clear of sixth-placed Villarreal who were beaten by Girona earlier on Saturday.
Cristian Stuani and Anthony Lozano got the goals for Girona who are now just a point behind Villarreal in seventh.
Also on Saturday Deportivo La Coruna drew 1-1 with Eibar, and Leganes beat Malaga 2-0. — dpa